Leap Year proposals still going strong

The window of opportunity for a Leap Year proposal is a brief one, but according to research, it is still going strong today.

Published:09:00Saturday 20 February 2016

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Plans are already afoot for surprises this February, as ladies across the UK prepare to take the opportunity to ask their partners to marry them.

As February 29 only happens once every four years, the window of opportunity for a Leap Year proposal is a brief one, but according to research, it is still going strong today.

Of the 1000 UK women surveyed by the Nationwide Building Society, almost a third (30 per cent) said they would consider making a Leap Year proposal, with a further one in 20 (six per cent) saying they were already planning a proposal this year.

In fact, more than two in five (42 per cent) said they may be more likely to ask a partner to marry them because of the opportunity afforded by a Leap Year.

More than one in ten (11 per cent) of the women surveyed had already asked for their partner’s hand in marriage, with very positive results – 86 per cent of their proposals had been accepted. Less than one in ten (seven per cent) had been turned down.

Despite the overwhelming success of the ladies we surveyed post-proposal, there were varied attitudes to the general custom of leap year proposals. While more than one in ten females (13 per cent) described it a romantic tradition that their partner would or had loved, seven per cent were more pragmatic, citing it as a good opportunity to put an end to waiting for their partner to ask them. Some eight per cent said Leap Year proposals were the ultimate example of ‘girl power’, while one in seven (14 per cent) said they wouldn’t dream of asking their partner to marry them.

Since it wouldn’t be fair just to ask the ladies, Nationwide also asked 1000 UK men how they thought they might feel if they received a proposal, or how they’d felt if they’d already received one. Half (50 per cent) said they would feel, or had felt, flattered (28 per cent), or so fantastic that they would accept or had accepted (23 per cent). However one in ten thought it would show they’d been too slow, and almost one in twenty (four per cent) suggested that they’d feel their luck had run out.

Andrew Baddeley-Chappell, Nationwide’s head of savings policy, said: “Planning and staging a memorable marriage proposal often doesn’t come cheap, whoever is doing the asking, but it also needs to reflect your budget too!

“Regularly saving, even small amounts, can help you achieve that goal, so that even if you’re not in a financial position to be able to afford to pop the question this Leap Year, you have another four years to save enough to create a lasting impression.”